The Journey Begins

The beginning of this journey began in 2012...
We had just celebrated our 6 year anniversary.  We had planned to go out for dinner as usual and didn't really have anything else planned for the evening.  We were delighted to find out that the Lord has given our family a little miracle.  We are expecting a BABY!  

The timing of all of that was quite interesting.  

We had started with the adoption agency in January of 2012 eager to answer a burden that the Lord had placed on our heart for growing our family and serving the Lord with our whole family via Adoption.  The meeting didn't go tremendously well and we were told that because of some specific circumstances it might be a bit tough to have our home study approved.  We left the meeting feeling disappointed, and confused.  

With the adoption processing needing to be delayed for at least a year, we were asking ourselves the question "are we doing everything we can do to "grow" our family."  After prayer and deliberation we decided just 2 weeks prior to the pregnancy announcement that we should see a reproductive endocrinologist.  

Well, we no longer needed that appointment, as the Lord saw fit to have answered our prayers for a baby long before ever stepping into that office!  

We were super excited, a little nervous, and very hopeful that we will actually get to meet our baby.  The Lord more than answered our prayers to have our little Isaac get a good long time to grow in my womb, and a repetitively easy pregnancy and miraculously quick and sneaky delivery.  

When Isaac turned one in October or 2013 the adoption thoughts began again. 

We knew we would adopt an older child (this was Jonathan's thought back when we started in January of 2012, but I wasn't ready from the losses, I felt I emotionally needed an infant) November brought lots of research into countries that would fit our "profile".  We Registered on the Rainbow kids website and Reece's rainbow... 2 very "dangerous" sites, as all the kiddos just melt your heart.

The Lord was really showing our family that every child deserves a loving family where they can be known and know others intimately. We are so fortunate to have been adopted into the family of God, and know the acceptance that comes with that adoption. We were thinking through what country profile might work best...

In December we were set on the Ukraine.  The needs of the orphans there were great, and we were more comfortable at the time with a child that looked similar to us.  We researched agencies, and picked one, and started the process of paperwork and finding a home study agency.  All seemed to be moving along with such ease, we even received amzing  news that a car accident I had been in was going to be "paying" for our home study fee from the settlement. All things were going well...

From the end of December till the middle of January our family was so sick it was tough to make progress on anything adoption related.  We were all frustrated that we weren't able to make any progress, and regularly prayed that the Lord would bring healing so we could pursue the adoption.

While we were praying and deliberating, the photos of little kiddos just kept coming into my email (I warned you those sites are dangerous), and I really started to fall for the adorable children from China, even though I knew we didn't meet the requirements...

It seemed the illness was purposeful, and the Lord used the time to make it clear that we weren't going to be going to the Ukraine after all. The Lord was going to use the "yes" we had for the orphans who looked like us in the Ukraine, and the "yes" we had for the orphans for little to no special needs, and transform it to a "yes" for all his orphaned children.

On January 27th (my birthday) we decided to contact Great Wall of China Adoption Agency to find out if China ever makes exemptions to their requirements. We were still uncertain if we would abandon our Ukraine process, and praying for a clear yes, if we were supposed to go to China.  We were told we could fill out an eligibility check and specific exemption form and they would review it and send it to China on our behalf to see if an exemption could be obtained.

We submitted our paperwork on Feb. 5th to China.

We finalized our paperwork on February 6th and were told it could be a little while.  We were praying for a clear yes, and on Monday Februray 10th we got our official exemption granted from China, allowing us to pursue an adoption there. We felt the Lord confirmed this was were he wanted us.

Februray 10th we got the profile of the little boy we heard all about on January 27th, David.

February 11th, I sent emails to 6 different "friends" from varying points in life asking them for help with his file review.  Every single one of them replied and one amazing lady offered to have it viewed by a pediatric internal specialist, and a neurological specialist, free of charge!  And another amazing friend's husband who is a PA extraordinaire offered to review David's file as well...  We were in love.. But the Journey gets much rockier from there... 

Lessons Learned

Learning and growing comes in many forms. Noah is a wonderful source of revelation for me, not just in my own sanctifcation, but in showing me greater "misbeliefs" in my head. I think because Noah and I spend the whole day together every day, I have more of an opportunity to have my heart displayed in my responses to my son, weather in delight or displeasure. My need to love and have a joy filled heart for my child is easy to understand, and easy to see when I am not.

Some how, I approached my son with the utmost patience (or the knowledge that I need to have utmost patience, love, and joy), and my husband, with the utmost inpatience (and feeling justified, afterall, he is a grown-up, and grown-ups are perfect:) ). I expect way more from my husband, as far as perfection is concerned, than I would ever expect from Noah or anyone else. I expect my husband to just do XY or Z. When he fails to met my expectations, I have little to no patience for him.

Yes, we could all argue, our husbands are more mature, and should be less of a challenge in our day than our children. But the fact remains, that my husband or your husband isn't perfect, they never will be, and we are always struggling to remain one with them. Since it is oneness we are struggling to maintain, perfection (because we of course are perfect:)) can be more of an annoyance to me, than loving my child, who isn't one with me.

Noah was haveing a particuarly rough couple of days, and I found myself struggling to have joy and love him, but in the process, was deeply aware of the fact that I was struggling. Now translate the same circumstance when Jonathan and I are having a "tough" week, and I some how don't realize that I am struggling, I always want to point out why he is "wrong" or "making our week hard" instead of thinking where I am struggling to love my husband right now, whether he is right or wrong.

Why are our husbands less deserving of our love and patience? They aren't! But somehow I have a hard time remembering that. I need to love my husband and my child, not Love my child, and if I have energy left over, love my husband. The effort put into Noah, should be the energy put into my husband, if not even more.

For the Nutrition Followers

Some of you are here for the purpose of reading my thoughts on Health, nutrition, wellness etc. I am no longer posting these blogs here.

This blog is being reclaimed as the family blog. I will still post stuff at is applies to Noah and our family, but not just in general terms any longer. If you are interested in still receiving information about said topics, you will need to update your feed.

Visit me at my new location! And sign up to receive your RSS feeds!
I would love to continue to inspire, shock, and annoy you!

Honey and Oil salve....dry skin

Okay, So I have gotten some emails about how to "make" this supposed honey oil lotion. Well, it isn't a fine science...sorry engineers:)

What I did:
For a one time use, put a small dab of "Really Raw Honey" on your finger tip. Drop 4 drops of almond oil (if for a face) or avocado oil(also okay for faces) or olive oil (better for hands and other dry areas) and rub between fingers until well combined. lightly massage into affected area and then spray or dab with some water.
It will be slightly sticky....it is just the nature of honey:) I recommend this for a night time treatment and leave it on overnight and you will be baby smooth in the morning.

In a small Jar: I mixed honey and oil together....and equal parts in a small baby food jar. This is good for moisturizing larger areas of the body. Then you dip in either a wooden stick to the mixture and stir it and then lift some out of the jar. Apple as necessary and follow the water instructions above.

Why a wooden stick? You don't need one, but it just helps from continually introducing the little things you are hosting on your hands into the mix.... it isn't necessary:)

I wouldn't store the mixture for more than a week! Make sure it stays covered.

If you are really struggling with dry skin, I highly, highly recommend placing a cool mist humidifier in the room where you sleep, it is an economic purchase! (you can get a bedroom size on for about $25 at Bed Bath and Beyond...and with your 20% off coupon it is even cheaper:) ) It does wonders for your skin and dry nasal cavities this time of year! You will be amazed at how much less oil or lotion you will go through!

Also consider adding more Omega-3's (which take about 1 month to see some improvement from)from an animal source to your diet....although in this climate...we all could use a little external help right now! But Dry skin in general is indicative of some sort of a nutritional deficiency!

Remember health is from the inside out...

Hope that helps!

Mom's of Western NY

I wanted to share with you all, that as of this upcoming Tuesday, I will have my own blog "Alternative Ally" on a Western New York Mom's Blog. If you are in Western NY please feel free to join!

The group mostly has information pertaining to play groups, things to do with your children, mommy ideas/advice and an opportunity to meet more mom's in your area. If that sounds like something you would be interested in, come join us!

Happy Friday!

I have a toddler

If we weren't sure before this week, we are definitely sure now...we have a toddler. It is like overnight our nice sweet little boy had a transformation to a tantrum throwing 2 year old who throws himself on the ground and screams when he doesn't get his way.
While I have had my moments of frustration with him when, for example, he decided that he wasn't going to bend his body when I was trying to put him in his car seat after story hour, while screaming, it has been enjoyable to really see "him."
Noah was an excellent listener through his 1's, and while I enjoyed it, it was tougher to see who he really was. Now it is easier to see his personality. He has gotten quite good and letting us know what he wants. While, at times, this transition can be "inconvenient or frustrating" it is also nice when instead of crying, he can simply tell me "mommy foot stuck." Ah ha, now I know how I can help him, no more guess:)
I guess this week I have been challenged to see my child as a true joy in stead of an inconvenience. I decided I was going to thank God every time he threw a tantrum for creating my child with likes, dislikes, and uniquely as his, and I have been amazed to see the Lord change my mind about the circumstance!
There is always hope and Joy in Jesus, I don't know why I am surprised by this when I see it displayed. Like the little things Noah does...his new thing is coming into the kitchen and telling me "dance mommy, dance, up please." When I pick him up he says "Shaaaallllll Weeeeeeeee, Dance" and giggles wildly as we spin around. How precious! How could I not be thankful for such a jewel?

New Home for Recipes

I know some of you come here looking for my recipes! I wanted to let you know that as of today, I have launched a new Alternative Cooking blog! I hope to inspire and help you all cook for your families. Please visit us and let me know what you think!

Food Sensitivity? Who cares, I don't feel sick, now pass the brownies!

I can't tell you how many times I have heard someone say, well I don't feel sick. As if that is something to brag about:) When you are diagnosed with a food allergy or a food sensitivity, take it seriously! Most people don't "feel" the affects of any disease, illness, or chronic condition until they are at least %80 there, or in some cases until they are 100% there like with heart disease.

Wheat, our number one culprit. Not all are allergic or sensitive to wheat, but lots are. Some with just sensitivities, tend to eat and either not notice any side effects, or get a mild stomach ache, nothing that will stop them for reaching for that second helping of cake:)

Let's take a look at a wheat/gluten sensitivity or allergy from the gut. When a wheat product is consumed it causes a malabsorption issue b/c the gut can't properly handle it, the end result, a massive deficiency of vitamins B1, B3, B12, Folic acid and the mineral zinc will soon follow. A serious deficiency in any or all of these problems causes issues, the long term result is Dementia.

The malabsorption of vitamins isn't the only problem, the gut also will have issues absorbing essential minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron, and manganese. The Gut also become super permeable to substances like Aluminum.

One might be more prone to broken bones, cavities, seizures, chronic headaches, miscarriages, illness, weakened immune system and chronic conditions such as recurring ear infections, sinusitis, etc.

Does that Brownie still sound so tempting? We got to see this play out in Noah. Our tip off was seizures, then a magnesium deficiency was discovered, he got his first broken bone at 1 1/2, and suffered from severe eczema.

To some this doesn't apply, if you aren't sensitive or allergic to wheat just take proper care in preparing your grains and enjoy! To those of you who are, is it still worth it? :)

Sources: PPNF Health Journal

Ode to Honey and Joy!

As many of you know, Noah has had problems with severe facial eczema due to his food allergies that went undetected for almost a year. After removing the offending foods, he was still having problems with really raw, red, irritated and fish scale checks. We tried oil after oil on them (including almond which is recommended for eczema suffers,) while the almond oil seemed to help minimally, he still looked like he had sore checks.

After doing some research, I am amazed to report, that honey has been our solution. "Honey, you say, have you lost your mind?" No, I haven't although I must admit I was skeptical too, but it really has helped reduce his red, irritated checks, and now they are baby bottom smooth.


The catch, you must use really raw honey. And when I say really raw honey, I mean the stuff looks like a stiff block, not the nice drizzlely kind.

Method: Mix a dap of honey and a dab of oil (olive, avocado, almond) together between fingers. Aple to the affected area with a light circular motion. Spray or dab with mineral or filtered water. Leave on the skin.

I am amazed at how well it works, not only on Noah's face, but my hands too!

Brand recommends: Really Raw Honey

If you need more suggestions or are looking for scrubs, masks, etc look here.
Hope this helps!

Noah Baby?

Noah turned 2 on the 28th of December, and with his birthday came much joy, and some sorrow. It has been such a pleasure and a joy watching my son grow into a toddler, but with it comes some sadness. As Jonathan and I sang Happy Birthday to our little man, and he scarfed down his pumpkin pie it hit me he will never be a baby again. All the cloths that I have put up in the attic that he has outgrown are done, they will never be his again.

I so miss having a little baby to cuddle. While I love my little man, there is something that the cuddles of a baby just do to you. Noah, is anything but a cuddler. His definition of snuggles is a quick lay of his head on your shoulder and a quick pat on the back. While this is just absolutely precious, I miss the baby who sat in my lap for hours.

Well, this week, the Lord has answered my prayer of wanting to cuddle:) The last three days with Noah have been a cuddling festival. He has been waking up several hours after going down at night and just wanting to sit and cuddle. Last night was by far the most amazing. Something was definitely bothering him. We still aren't sure what, but at 9:00pm, after he had been crying every half hour, I went in to get him. I brought him into our bed, and he laid with Jonathan and I cuddling for 45 minutes, completely content. I was so tempted to just leave him there...but alas I returned him to his bed.

I couldn't help but think after getting back into bed how good the Lord was. While it seems silly to be praising him for a restless child, it was exactly what my soul needed:)

cod liver oil update

Since December there has been so much controversy of the use of Cod Liver Oil due to a recent study published by the Vitamin D council. I wanted to post the re-buttle article written to maybe help make some sense of all of this. You can read the article here.

If you don't want to read the whole thing, I will pretty much say, that the previous post, as far I can understand is still valid, it is the ratio of Vitamin A to vitamin D that is crucial for avoiding any type of Vitamin A toxicity.

A popular brand: Nordic Naturals was used in the Vitamin D Councils study, and this oil is flushed to remove portions of the naturally occurring Vit. D.

Please refer to the previous post for brand recommends.

Our Little Narrator

It is official. Noah has turned 2! I can't believe I am the mother to a 2 year old... With his age comes wisdom, and almost full sentences:) A day with Noah, is like having a narrator along side of you.

The morning begins, I open the door to Noah's room, "mommy open door" said Noah. He is now on the changing table "mommy changin' diaper" "stinky poopy, mommy." "downstairs now, mommy, 1,2,3,4 boom boom down stairs mommy."
I give Noah his eggs,
"Thank you mommy, eat eggs, mommy." exclaimed Noah:)
I reply: "you're welcome Noah."
"Breakfast all done, mommy."
"Clean up please mommy."
I will spare
you the narration of the rest of the day :)

We also have a photo ham. I asked Noah to get his stool so I could take a picture of him in front of the Christmas tree. He immediately returned with his stool, sat down and said Cheeeesssseeee!

He even loves to chat on the phone these days. He always wants to talk to Emmy, Aunt Manda, Aunt Kellie, Rachel, Or Connor (his 1 1/2 year old cousin) He is obsessed with manners, and gets very upset when someone comes in the house and doesn't take off their shoes, or Jacket! Why you ask? Because that is what makes sense to Noah. He has a definite order for how just about everything during the day is "supposed to happen." If anyone breaks his precious order you will hear about it! :)

I have to say I love the company of a chatterbox and I am even enjoying his newly asserted self. I have the privilege of getting to watch this little boy, turn into a little man!

Merry Christmas To All!

I know some of you would like a full view of Noah. So below you will find a slide show of pictures throughout the course of the year. Enjoy!

Mom Photo Frame

Grocery Store Wars

De-framing Framingham

The Framingham study is a study about the risk factors associated with heart disease. Their primary goal is to establish a risk score for individuals, so that the medical community can "size up" their patients against the score and give them guidelines. Most of the risk factors include blood work-ups. Cholesterol is a public enemy number one based on their findings...
There are so many reasons why the recommends in this study are counter intuitive, but I also like to find research that backs up my instincts.

The British medical journal was the first to publish the findings, but they have now been picked up by numerous medical journals. A team of scientist decided to do their own "Framingham" study in Britain...

Their study finding showed that the men in the "lowest risk" category based on the Framingham score had the highest number of Heart disease...84% higher than what was predicted. The study found that all the results and scores from the Framingham study were completely overestimated.
The British, more or less found the opposite to be true...higher cholesterol....lower the heart attack...

Cod liver Oil

So, with all the talk about vitamin D and winter months...I have been asked what brands of cod liver oil do I reccomend. Make sure any brand you buy has been screened for mercury, has been cold processed, and has not had the original vitamin component removed. Fish oils in general are in the media right now because of Omega benefits. Many manufacturers, however, are removing the naturally occuring vit A and D for concerns of toxicity, and then adding back in lower levels of said vitamins in their synthetic form.

Some brand reccomends:]

In Stores: Garden of Life, regular dose cod liver oil; Nordic Naturals Vitamin D Cod Liver Oil

Online/Mail Order:

• Dr. Ron's High Vitamin Old Fashioned Blue Ice Pure Cod Liver Oil, 1-877-472-8701, drrons.com
• Radiant Life, Premier High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil, (888) 593-8333, 4radiantlife.com
• Blue Ice, High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil, (402) 858-4818, greenpasture.org
• Wolf River Naturals, wolfrivernaturals.com

Additional label information if you are choosing a brand not on this list. Some brands of cod liver oil contain very little vitamin D compared to vitamin A. The ration of A to D in cod liver oil should be 10 to 1 or less. (In one popular brand, the ratio of A to D is almost 100 to 1.) Vitamin A and vitamin D work synergistically and without the vitamin D, the vitamin A could be toxic. (Don't buy Barleans...it has a 1000 to 1 ratio.)
Additional Information in Article Form

Vitamins an overview

With the winter quickly approaching, and access to fresh veggies is dwindling, many are left wondering how can I make sure my family gets enough vitamins. As American consumers we go to the grocery store and see shelves upon shelves of pharmaceutical vitamins. Some are multi some are single. Some have the whole complex of the vitamin, others are for anti-aging, men or women.

The true irony of vitamin supplements in the grocery store is so often missed or not even thought about by the average consumer. We have become accustomed to the "one-a-day" concept. We have failed to look around the grocery store for our nutrition, and tend to focus on the "one-a-day" for our nutrition. Further more, most of the items contained in the grocery store do nothing to enhance our body's vitamin storage and production, but rather necessitate something else being added after all the damage the food we bought does to our system. Gotta love the industrialization of our food.

Traditional cultures didn't have names for vitamins, they didn't know what vitamins were contained in what food and how many IU of vitamins were required everyday for optimal health. They didn't have food label, or Daily Values established for the foods they ate. They just ate the foods that energized and avoided the foods that caused lethargy or any array of other unpleasant side effects. Our problem. Our bodies operate at such a strung out mal-nourished state all the time we don't even know how to read our own bodies signals. We have been trained to think this tired, overwhelmed, stomach ache, constipation, headache, etc, etc. existence is normal. We have separated those and various other symptoms from our food and have deemed them symptoms that require a "supplement" to fix, whether it be a laxative or a vitamin...we are missing the point.

Vitamins occur in nature in their complete form in the presence of their naturally occurring counterparts, so the body can process and utilize them. When you give your body just a component of a vitamin, it is like giving a child a book, who can't read, and asking them to read it. Giving your child a book, is a good thing, but in the end it won't amount to much if you don't take the time to show them how to accomplish the task at hand...and vitamins are no different.

No pill can replace the value properly prepared foods. They wouldn't be able to manufacture a pill large enough to encompass such a task, nor would anyone want to swallow such a feat.

So what are you to do? Start by spending time researching your food supply. Many foods, vary greatly in vitamin content based on the soil they were grown in. For example, because of the excessive use of nitrogen fertilizers conventionally grown oranges contain 0% vitamin C. The USDA did nutrition profiles of crops from the 50's-70's. Additional research and label updates have not been done since then. It is your job to know what happens to your food before it hits your plate.

Get a basic overview about vitamins, where they are found, and what ones are worth the money!

Try to eliminate the synthetic forms of vitamins from your diet as much as possible.

Increase your grocery budget and decrease your supplement budget...

A Great "Con" fusion.

Scenario: Enter into kitchen, slice your chicken for pan frying, heat the stove, place your pan to heat and then you place ____________________ oil in the pan.

Question: What do you put in your pan?

For many of you, you simply follow the American Heart Assoc (AHA) recommendations: A low saturated fat oil which equals a vegetable oil (canola, soybean, cottonseed, etc.) You complete your pan fried chicken feeling good that you have feed your family a "healthier" dinner using your canola oil.

Why am a dedicating a post to this? Well, it is simple really...okay, not so simple, but we need to start somewhere. We will begin with the trans-fats misconception. So the AHA recommends a low saturated fat oil for consumption. The AHA also tells us that Trans-fatty acids are bad for us and increase the risks of cancers, heart attacks, blocked arteries, and inflammation. I'm sure you are thinking where is the problem?

A little piece of the puzzle is missing. Canola oil and its other vegetable oil counterparts contain trans-fatty acids. I know you are thinking that the nutrition label very clearly states that it is trans-fats free. In fact they base entire marketing campaigns on the fact that they are. The FDA requires foods that have a greater than .5g of trans-fats per serving to be labeled (page 17 section 5, first paragraph). Foods that contain .49 grams of trans fats a consumer doesn't have the right to know about them. Canola oil, according to the Canola Association in Canada states that Canola oil contains less than .2% per serving. Independent studies one in particular done at the university of Florida indicated that the levels of liquid oil were closer to 4.5% per serving (at the bottom of risks), and in solid vegetable oils as high at 40% due to the full hydrogenation of the oil.

Bottom line: it is best to avoid all trans-fats. They are not naturally occurring, and your body cannot process them. Pass on the canola oil and go for the butter or coconut oil for cooking.

Flu Season

With the brink of flu season quickly approaching, the start of flu shots has begun. It seems I can't walk into a store or read a newspaper, that doesn't have some sort of promotion of this vaccine. I am not going to go into all the reasons and research that suggests that they are ineffective, if you want more about that, leave a comment and I will dedicate a post to it, but rather what you can do to prevent, shorten or lessen the symptoms of the flu naturally.

We will talk about 4 things in the post:

The new wonder vitamin. Vitamin D wins the vitamin spotlight this flu season. New research suggests that our vitamin D requirement, from the FDA, is guesstimated to be aprox. ten times lower than what our bodies really need. This new research also shows the important role that vitamin D plays in helping our immune systems fight off viruses (including the flu.)

We have known for a while now that Vitamin C is a wonderful immune booster too! The important thing to note about Vitamin C is that it is not a heat stable vitamin. By that I mean, once heated the activating power in the vitamin is killed. What does that mean for you? Put down the pasteurized OJ, and eat an organic orange straight up!

Garlic is a wonderful natural anti-fungal and bacterial agent as well. Garlic, just like vitamin C, needs to be consumed in its raw unheated state. Once it is heated, the antimicrobial agent is killed. So, hold your nose and chew some cloves. :)

Coconut oil. Natures miracle oil, Why? Coconut oil as well, has antimicrobial agents in it. Lauric acid is most commonly noted in the oil. This helps the brain and the immune system all at one time! Just think you are getting smarter and avoiding the flu all at one time! A recent study showed the patients who had pneumonia who were supplemented with Coconut oil recovered faster than those who just had antibiotic treatment.

Noah Man

So, I know so of you want to see more photos of Noah, so here goes. This is the photo update from August to September. This covers our trip to see Rachel, Rob, and Hannah, Noah's broken arm, the labor day parade, and the purchase of Noah's new bike helmet. Which he seems to be absolutely attached to. While I know it is now November, and I am only covering till September, I promise I will get the others up this week! Happy viewing.